Lubricating device for compensating gearing.



.NQ. 796,957. PATENTED AUG. 8, 1905.

w. H. & H. T. GOLDWELL. I

LUBRIGATING DEVICE FOR GOMPENSATING GBARING.

- APPLICATION FILED MAR.6,1905.

Altomeyv.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM H. COLDWELL AND HARRY T. COLDWELL, OF NEWBURGH,

NEWv YORK.

LUBRICATING DEVICE FOR COMPENSATING GEARING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 8, 1905.

Original application filed June 2, 1904, Serial No. 210,890. Divided and application filed August 9, 1904, Serial No. 220,116. Again divided and this application filed March 6. 1905. Serial No. 248,567.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, WILLIAM H. COLD- WELL and HARRY T. CoLDWELL, citizens of the United States, residing at N ewburgh, in the county of Orange and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lubricating Devices for Compensating Gearing; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention is an improvement in lubricating devices for compensating gearing and is a division of our former application for Letters Patent of the United States, filed August 9, 1904:, Serial No. 220,116, which is a division of our former application for Letters Patent of theUnited States, filed June 2, 1904, and given Serial No. 210,890.

Our present invention consists in the novel features hereinafter described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one form in which we have contemplated embodying it, and the invention is fully disclosed in the following description and claims. 7

The improvement which forms the subjectmatter of this invention is shown and described in connection with the combined traction and lawn-rolling rollers of the motor lawn-mower which forms the subject-matter of our application, Serial No. 210,890, above referred to; but this invention applies to the lubrication of compensating gearing wherever the same may be employed and is particularly applicable to cases in which such gearing is incased so as to be inaccessible, as is particularly the case where it is used in connection with sectional rollers for rolling land or lawns or for other purposes.

Referring to the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 represents a sectional view of a sectional roller and a portion of a frame supported thereby, with compensating gearing arranged between the sec .tions of the roller, the said construction havpart of the compensating gearing. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view illustrating the hollow shaft, portions of the rollers, and the compensating gearing and illustrating the of a sectional roller, both of which are loosely mounted upon a driving-shaft D, with a compensating gearing between the inner ends of the rollers. It will be noted that the adjacent edges of the roller-sections approach each other closely, so as to inclose the compensating gearing and form a casing therefor,

and, if preferred, an annular flange 0 may be formed on or secured to one of the roller-sections and extend into the other section, so as to entirely close the slit or aperture between their meeting edges, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3 and as claimed in our former application, Serial No. 220,116, above referred to, for the purpose of excluding dirt, &c. The compensating gearing comprises the bevel gear-wheel 6 secured to the hubs or arms of the rollersections E, as shown, and a spider 6 mounted rigidly upon the shaft or axle D and carrying the pinion e*. The spider consists of a hub, which is cored out around the shaft D, as shown in Fig. 3, to form an annular recess 0 and a number of arms extending radially from the hub, (in this instance three arms being shown,) each of said arms being cored longitudinally to form a passage 0. Each of said arms carries one of the pinions 0*, and the bearing portions of the arms are drilled to provide apertures 6 communicating with the cored centers of the said arms. The shaft D is made hollow, as shown at (Z, to provide a longitudinal oil passage or reservoir, and a hole (or holes) d is formed in the shaft transversely to the longitudinal passage (Z to afford communication between said longitudinal oilpassage in the shaft and the recess 6 in the hub of the spider, thus enabling oil to be supplied from the shaft to the spider and through the passages in the arms of the spider and in the bearing portions of said arms to all of the pinions 6*, as clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The shaft D is closed at both ends, the closure at one end being removable to permit oil to be introduced. In Fig. 1 we have shown one end of the shaft 1) provided with a removable screw-plug (Z which can be removed to introduce oil to the shaft.

In Figs. 4 and 5 we have shown a modification of the means for introducing the lubricant into the shaft and closing the aperture through which it is introduced. In these figures, D represents the shaft or axle which carries the spider-E, both of said parts being arranged as previously described. Within the longitudinal oil-recess (Z of the shaft D we arrange a piston 1, fitting therein and pro vided with a rod 2 of any desired length. The shaft is provided adjacent to its end with a transverse oil-aperture 3, communicating with the longitudinal passage (V, and we prefer to locate this passage 3 at such a distance from the end of the shaft that the piston 1 may be drawn outward beyond the passage 3 without entirely withdrawing the piston from the shaft, as shown in Fig. 5. l/Vhen the parts are in this position, the lubricant is poured into the passage 3 and passes into the oil-passage (Z X in the shaft until it is wholly or partly filled. By pushing in the piston 1 into the shaft a portion of the oil will be forced to pass from the shaft through the hollow arms of the spider, and thus to the bearings of the compensating gear pinions, as will be readily understood. The remaining portion of the oil will be retained in the oil-passages and will find its way gradually to the said pinions, thus maintaining the constant lubrication thereof. In the present instance we have shown a screw-cap 4, rotatably secured upon the end of the stem or rod 2 by means of shoulders 5 5 on said stem on the inner and outer sides of said cap, the flange of the cap 4 being interiorly screw-threaded to screw on the end of the shaft 1), which is threaded for that purpose. It is preferable that the outer end of the passage 3 in the shaft should be covered by the flange of the cap when the latter is screwed into place, as shown in Fig. 4, to prevent dust from getting into the oil-passage. The periphery of the cap 4 is preferably milled or roughened, as shown, or may be provided with a polygonal exterior, if preferred, to facilitate removing and replacing the cap. It is obvious that the stem or rod 2 of the piston 1 may be held in place by other retaining means, if desired.

What we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a hollow drivingshaft, compensating gearing connected to said shaft and comprising among its members, a

spider having oil passages communicating with said hollow shaft and pinions mounted on the arms of said spider, said oil-passages having openings in the bearing portions of the spider-arms to lubricate said pinions, substantially as described.

2. The combination with a shaft provided with a longitudinal oil-passage therein,of compensating gearing comprising among its members a spider mounted on said shaft and provided with an annular recess surrounding the shaft, and with radial arms having internal oil-passages communicating with said recess, each of said arms having a bearing portion and a transverse passage therein communicating with the interior oil-passage, and pinions mounted on the bearing. portions of said arms, said shaft being provided with a transverse passage connecting said interior oil-passage of the shaft with the oil-recess in the spider, said shaft being provided with an aperture for introducing oil into the oil-passage thereof, and a removable closure for said aperture, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a hollow shaft, compensating gearing connected to said shaft comprising among its members a spider having oil-passages communicating with said hollow shaft, and pinions mounted on the arms of said spider, said oil-passages in the spider having openings in the bearing portions of the spider-arms to lubricate said pinions, and a piston in said hollow shaft for forcing the lubricant through the oil-passages in said shaft and spider to said pinion-bearings, substantially as described.

4:. The combination with a hollow shaft, compensating gearing connected to said shaft comprising among its members a spider having oil-passages communicating with said hollow shaft, and pinions mounted on the arms of said spider, said oil-passages in the spider having openings in the bearing portions of the spider-arms to lubricate said pinions, a piston in said hollow shaft for forcing the lubricant through the oil-passages in said shaft and spider to said pinion-bearings, operating means for said piston extending outside of said shaft, and means for securing said piston in position in said shaft to close the oil-passages therein, substantially as described.

5. The combination with a hollow shaft, compensating gearing connected to said shaft comprising among its members a spider having oil-passages communicating with said hollow shaft, and pinions mounted on the arms of said spider, said oil-passages in the spider having openings in the bearing portions of the spider-arms to lubricate said pinions, anda piston in said hollow shaft, for forcing the lubricant through the oil-passages in said shaft and spider, to the pinion-bearings, said shaft having a transverse inlet-aperture located at a distance from its end, to permit the insertion of lubricant without withdrawing the piston from the shaft, substantially as described.

6. The combination with a shaft, provided with a longitudinal oil-passage, a compensating gearing mounted thereon and having lubrieating-passages communicating with said oilpassage in said shaft, a piston in the oil-passage in said shaft, provided with a stem, a screw-cap, rotatably secured to said stern and adapted to engage the end of the shaft to close the oil-passage therein, substantially as described.

7. The combination with a shaft provided with a longitudinal oil-passage, of a compensating gearing mounted thereon and having lubricating-passages communicating with said. oil-passage in said shaft, a piston in the oilpassage, in said shaft provided with a stem, said shaft having a transversely-disposed filling passage adjacent to one end, communicating with said longitudinal passage, and a cap connected with the stem of the said piston and provided with a flange for engaging the end of said shaft and closing said longitudinal passage and said transverse filling-passage, substantially as described.

8. The combination with a shaft, provided with a longitudinal oil-passage, of a compensating gearing mounted thereon and having lubricating-passages communicating with said oil-passage in said shaft, a piston in the oilpassage of said shaft provided with a stem, said shaft having a transversely-disposed filling-passage adjacent to one end communicating with said longitudinal passage, and having a threaded portion, and a cap rotatably connected with said stem and having an interiorly-threaded flange for engaging the threaded portion of the shaft, said flange being adapted to close said transversely-disposed fillingpassage, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

WVILLIAM H. (JOLDVVELL. HARRY T. COLDWELL. Witnesses: M. MOBURNEY, CHAS. A. STRELINGER. 

